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International trading companies are expected to carry out careful due diligence on their clients and suppliers to ensure that they avoid unwitting involvement in tax fraud. However, in relieving a long-established business of multi-million-pound VAT...
When companies experience cashflow difficulties, stressed directors all too often prioritise trade and other creditors over HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC). As a tax tribunal ruling showed, however, such a course is almost never wise and is highly likely to...
No one would be surprised to hear that late filing of a tax return is likely to result in a financial penalty – but what if a return is submitted too early? In addressing that novel issue, the First-tier Tribunal (FTT) identified flaws in guidance...
Businesses that operate in highly regulated fields can be permanently shut down at the stroke of an official pen. However, as a case concerning the wholesale liquor trade made plain , the law requires that such decisions are reasonable. The case involved a...
Those who put their money into nascent businesses can in certain circumstances claim tax credit under the Enterprise Investment Scheme (EIS). However, as one case showed, in order to qualify for such relief, investors must place their capital at genuine risk...
When selling your business, the structure of the transaction matters enormously and should always be the subject of professional advice. In a case on point, two women who sold their company for a seven-figure sum ended up with Capital Gains Tax (CGT) demands...
If you are facing a tax inquiry, a lawyer will advise you that there are a wide variety of sensible steps you can take. However, as was underlined by an Upper Tribunal (UT) ruling , repeatedly failing to comply with HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) requests...
HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) investigations can be a daunting and potentially very costly experience for any business. However, as a tax tribunal ruling showed, clear and comprehensive record-keeping is the best defence. The case concerned two traders in...
Only expenses that are incurred wholly and exclusively for the purposes of trade can be deducted from a business's tax liabilities. That threshold is, to say the least, a demanding one but, as a First-tier Tribunal (FTT) ruling showed, it is not...
Keeping proper tax records may be time consuming and laborious, but a failure to do so can have disastrous consequences in the event of a visit by an officer of HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC). A company found that out to its cost after failing to convince...
